State Bird Provisions ready to reopen in its new and expanded form

Nicole Krasinski and Stuart Brioza of State Bird Provisions. Photo: John Storey/The Chronicle

Ladies and gentlemen, State Bird Provisionsis back.

Well, almost.

Arguably the hottest restaurant in San Francisco (if not the country), State Bird Provisions has been closed for renovations and expansion since August. Chefs and owners Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski will reopen their doors this weekend, though no reservations will be accepted for dinner on the first two services: Friday (Oct. 18) and Saturday (Oct. 19) nights. Then State Bird will be closed on Sunday, October 20. Starting Monday, October 21, it will be open nightly for dinner (a first), with reservations accepted — and as before, 30 to 40 percent of the dining room is reserved for walk-ins.

“We thought Friday and Saturday would be our kind of soft opening, so to speak,” says Brioza, with a laugh. “Which really means we’re opening it only to walk-in traffic.”

The restaurant will begin accepting reservations via phone or the website on Wednesday, October 16 at 1pm PST for dates beginning with Monday, October 21 and on. When the reservations lines initially open on Wednesday, 60 consecutive days of reservations will be available at once; going forward, a new day will open up for reservations every subsequent morning around 4am.

Got all that? Good. Now let’s talk about what’s new and improved at this revamped version of State Bird Provisions.

As reported earlier, Brioza and Krasinski took over the directly adjacent Fillmore Street space, allowing them to put in two new tables that can each accommodate between six to eight people (or both can be booked for 16 people total). The entrance has been changed — in addition to some new design flairs, there’s actually a host stand now.

Upon walking into the space, the first thing you may see is a new raw bar, with oysters and shellfish displayed on ice.

“It’s pretty neat,” says Brioza. “For us it’s another visual amenity as well. It’s one of those things that I love seeing in a restaurant.”

Local designer Wylie Price helped out with the remodel, installing hand-crafted design elements like his own metal manufacturing pieces, some of which are essentially metal versions of State Bird’s now-signature pegboards. A second bathroom was installed, and a heater is ready for those chilly nights.

The aforementioned new seats, dubbed the alcove tables, can be booked for a seating at either 5:30/6pm or at 8/8:30pm. The group tables will come with the option of two family-style set menus: a dinner with waves of small plates from the menu, similar to the dining room — or the whole shebang (every single thing on the menu).

Speaking of the food, expect a few new tricks from SBP 2.0.

“We have some new pancakes. There will be some new things on the menu, as well as the current favorites,” says Brioza. “We’re working through the menu … and we have some new ideas.”